Save The Giants

The Crisis

Over 400 elephants die every year in Sri Lanka. Time is running out.

Why We Must Act Now

It is time for all nature lovers, conservationists, educators, and responsible citizens to come together in defense of our elephants. We must demand a national strategy that prioritizes the protection and preservation of elephant habitats.

A key proposal is to identify and allocate several large, secure areas across the country as dedicated elephant zones—protected sanctuaries where elephants can live without the constant threat of conflict or displacement.

400+ Elephants Lost Annually
10-15 Years Until Extinction
Sri Lankan Elephant Elephant Family

Our Solution

A comprehensive protection system requiring coordinated effort across multiple levels of society.

Public Awareness Campaigns

These campaigns are crucial to educate people about the urgency of the issue and the importance of coexisting with elephants.

Newspapers

Media reaching rural communities and urban centers nationwide

500K+ Daily Readers
Television

Documentaries and educational news segments broadcast

2M+ Viewers
Radio

Local stations and community broadcasts reaching remote areas

1.5M+ Listeners
Social Media

Viral content and digital storytelling across multiple platforms

5M+ Reach
Community

Face-to-face education and dialogue sessions in villages

50+ Villages
Combined Impact
9M+ People Reached
75% Awareness Increase
500+ Communities Engaged

The Core Issue: Sustainable Funding

It's not that efforts haven't been made—but most initiatives stop within days or weeks due to a lack of sustained funding. The core issue is the shortage of continuous financial support.

To truly serve and protect elephants, we must establish a reliable and ongoing funding system. Protection alone is not enough—we need to consistently monitor their daily activities.

Daily Monitoring Activities

Landfill Security
Landfill Security

Elephants feeding at garbage landfills

Corridor Tracking
Corridor Tracking

Unregulated movement through elephant corridors

Risk Zone Alerts
Risk Zone Alerts

Risk zones where train accidents frequently occur

Habitat Protection
Habitat Protection

Allow elephants to live in their usual habitats without interference

Our Implementation Strategy

Only with a stable comprehensive support system, we can ensure both their safety and long-term survival. If we neglect, in another 10-15 years we might lose all our elephants.

Rapid-Response System

The immediate establishment of Rapid-Response Groups and Response Centers is crucial to effectively addressing this growing crisis. This system must operate continuously, without interruption, as any breakdown could jeopardize the protection of our elephants.

These efforts must persist until a safe, secure, and sustainable environment is created—one in which the elephant population can recover and thrive.

Emergency Deployment Capability

Our system will serve as the sole rapid-response mechanism in the event of an emergency, enabling our teams to be immediately deployed anywhere on the island to protect and safeguard our elephants.

This is not an easy task but we have to do our best to curtail elephant killings and increase their numbers. Cannot waste any more precious time. We Need Help. We need your support and help to establish this system in Sri Lanka.

01

International Collaboration

Coordinated elephant exchanges with India, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, and China's Yunnan Province to enhance genetic diversity and significantly strengthen long-term conservation efforts.

02

Rapid Response

24/7 emergency deployment system enabling immediate protection and safeguarding of elephants anywhere on the island.

03

Sustainable Funding

Reliable and ongoing funding system to ensure continuous protection and monitoring efforts.

Looking Back: What Went Wrong

Back in the 1990s and early 2000s, Sri Lanka's elephant population appeared relatively secure. The laws were stringent, and enforcement was strong. Our elephants had large expanses of jungle to themselves, where they could live and migrate freely without the threat of human interference.

Human settlements and development projects had not yet pushed so deeply into elephant territory. The harmony between humans and elephants, while not perfect, was largely maintained through respect for the boundaries of the wild.

The Current Reality

In this conflict, it is always the elephants—the "Gentle Giants" of our land—who suffer the most. Elephants are injured, killed, or displaced from their habitats. Electric fences, homemade explosives hidden in food (commonly known as "hakka patas"), and gunfire have taken a terrible toll.

These majestic animals, symbols of our heritage and biodiversity, are paying the ultimate price for our neglect and short-sighted development.

The Political Challenge

Sadly, little has been done at a governmental level to provide sustainable solutions. The plight of elephants often goes unnoticed in policy-making circles, overshadowed by political agendas and electoral calculations.

For many politicians, the voices of human voters carry more weight than the silent suffering of our elephants. Wildlife conservation is often treated as a secondary issue—an afterthought rather than a priority.

Time is running out.

Our Mission

Our goal is to reduce human-elephant conflict, prevent tragic elephant deaths, and create safe habitats where elephants can thrive. This includes stopping road and train accidents, keeping elephants away from dangerous landfills filled with human and medical waste, and educating farmers, villages on how to peacefully coexist with these majestic animals. Most importantly, we are fully committed to working in close collaboration with the Sri Lanka Wildlife Department, providing them with all necessary support to ensure the protection of our elephants. Our top priority will be to safeguard these majestic giants around the clock—24/7.

URGENT PROJECT

The Most Important Project
to Establish to Save our Giants

Creating Rapid-Response Groups and Response Centers to attend Human-Elephant Conflicts

400+ Elephants Killed Annually
80-90% Conflicts Could Be Mitigated

Are we going to look the other way? Let's do what we have to do to save them. Please help us to help these Magnificent Giants.

Our Strategic Response Plan

In the face of escalating human-elephant conflicts, swift and well-coordinated action is crucial. One of the most effective and sustainable solutions is the establishment of local rapid-response teams—composed of dynamic, trained young men and women—ready to intervene immediately when incidents occur.

Seven Strategic Response Centers

Nationwide Network for Rapid Response

7 Strategic Centers
Sri Lanka Map showing 7 Proposed Rapid-Response Centers
Response Centers
Strategic Locations
Precision Placement

We have identified seven strategic locations across the country—primarily in high-risk zones where elephants are commonly found and conflicts are frequent—for the construction of dedicated Response Centers.

High-Risk Zones

Areas with highest conflict probability

Frequent Conflicts

Locations with recurring incidents

Elephant Corridors

Natural migration pathways

100% Island Coverage
24/7 Response Time
7 Strategic Points

Expert Staffing

Each center will be staffed by four full-time personnel, fully trained by local and foreign elephant behavior experts.

24/7 Operations

Fully equipped with essential facilities to operate around the clock, ready for immediate response.

Rapid Transport

Trail motorcycles for swift action to reach conflict sites quickly and prevent escalation.

Why Local Monitoring Groups Matter

Empowering communities to become the first line of defense in human-elephant conflict prevention

Conflict Prevention

These groups act as first responders during early stages of conflict, helping prevent retaliation against elephants and providing farmers with fire crackers to scare elephants safely.

First Responders

Community Empowerment

Engaging youth—both men and women—in such groups fosters local ownership and responsibility, creating ambassadors for peaceful coexistence.

Youth Engagement

Data Collection

Trained local monitors collect vital data on elephant movements, behavior, and conflict hotspots for long-term mitigation strategies.

Research Data
OUR GOAL

90% Conflict Reduction

We are confident that, with the proper system in place, we can reduce conflict incidents by up to 90%. The need for these centers in our island nation is urgent and critical.

90%

Conflict Reduction

Target reduction in human-elephant conflicts

24/7

Active Monitoring

Round-the-clock surveillance and response

7

Strategic Centers

Nationwide network of response centers

Government Collaboration

While we will collaborate closely with the government, we will operate as an independent entity, capable of delivering support where government resources may fall short. Our teams will be active 24/7, ready to deploy at a moment's notice.

Human Elephant Conflict

Conflicts arise mainly due to habitat loss, uncontrolled expansion of farmland, and a lack of awareness among farmers about how to live alongside these gentle giants.

Habitat loss brings elephants into closer contact with human populations, which inevitably results in human-elephant conflict. In Sri Lanka, this conflict has reached crisis levels. As elephants venture into villages and farmlands in search of food, they often destroy crops, property, and sometimes even harm or kill people. In retaliation, villagers may attack or kill elephants using poison, firearms, or homemade explosives like "Hakka Patas" (exploding bait designed to kill or harm these animals).

Read More
Human Elephant Conflict
Garbage Landfills

Garbage Landfills

Open landfills near elephant habitats have become deadly feeding grounds for elephants. Elephants are drawn to the smell of food waste and often consume harmful materials such as plastic, polythene, and toxic substances, which can lead to fatal health consequences.

There are many in Sri Lanka. In Ampara district there over 4 such Landfills and the most dangerous landfill, I have seen is in Porthuville Town Council. There's no gates, or drains to prevent Elephants coming into this Landfill.

Read More

Train & Road Accidents

Construct elephant underpasses or overpasses in known crossing areas to allow elephants safe passage under or over the railway tracks. Recognizing the urgency of this issue, the Government of Sri Lanka initiated the construction of an elephant overpass in the Galgamuwa area in 2022.

This project stands as a clear example of well-planned infrastructure aimed at conserving wildlife while ensuring human safety. The overpass was carefully designed based on data about elephant movement patterns and high-risk collision zones. At present the work has been halted due to lack of funds. It's now close to 2 years no work has been conducted. Such overpasses not only prevent fatalities but also help maintain the natural migratory routes that elephants have used for generations. By expanding similar projects in other high-risk areas, Sri Lanka can significantly reduce elephant deaths on train tracks and move toward a more sustainable model of human-wildlife coexistence.

Read More
Train & Road Accidents
INVESTMENT BREAKDOWN

Transparent Financial Planning
for Sustainable Elephant Protection

Every dollar invested creates measurable impact in protecting Sri Lanka's elephant population

Initial Setup

$ 3M One-time

Complete infrastructure setup for all 7 response centers

7 Response Centers
14 Motorcycles
Complete Tech Setup

Monthly Operations

$ 16.1K Per Month

Sustained operations across all 7 centers

28 Staff Members
24/7 Operations
Full Coverage

Expected Impact

90% Conflict Reduction

Projected reduction in human-elephant conflicts

400+ Lives Saved
24/7 Protection
Community Safety

Detailed Financial Breakdown

Transparent cost analysis for informed decision making

Monthly Operational Costs

Per Center
Staff Salaries
4 Staff × $250/month $1,000
Fuel & Transport
2 Bikes × $5/day × 30 days $300
Meals
$5/person × 4 staff × 30 days $600
Utilities
Electricity & Water $100
Communications
Phone, Internet, WiFi $100
Supplies & Equipment
Flashlights, batteries, deterrents $150
Center Supplies
Tea, coffee, office supplies $50
Total Per Center $2,300
All 7 Centers $16,100

Initial Setup Investment

One-time
Infrastructure

7 Response Centers with complete facilities

Transportation

14 Trail motorcycles for rapid response

Technology

Communication systems, laptops, WiFi routers

Power Systems

Solar panels and backup power solutions

Safety Equipment

Emergency supplies, first aid, safety gear

Office Setup

Furniture, computers, communication devices

Total Initial Investment $3,000,000

One-time setup cost for complete system implementation

Investment Impact Timeline

How your investment creates lasting change

Month 1-3

System setup and staff training

0 Conflicts Prevented

Month 4-12

Active monitoring and response

200+ Lives Saved

Year 2+

Full system optimization

90% Conflict Reduction

Ready to Make a Difference?

Join us in creating a sustainable future for Sri Lanka's elephants. Every contribution brings us closer to our goal.